Brandeis Magazine

Eve Marder ’69, the Victor and Gwendolyn Beinfield Professor of Neuroscience, has received the National Academy of Sciences Award in the Neurosciences. In announcing the award, the NAS cited Marder as “one of the most influential neuroscientists of her generation” and praised her support of other researchers’ careers. She is only the second woman to receive the award since it was established in 1988. Marder’s research on small neural circuits found in lobsters and crabs has revolutionized scientists’ understanding of the fundamental nature of neuronal circuit operation.

The Jewish Book Council presented Jonathan Decter, the Edmond J. Safra Professor of Sephardic Studies, with a 2018 National Jewish Book Award in the category of Sephardic Culture for “Dominion Built of Praise: Panegyric and Legitimacy Among Jews in the Medieval Mediterranean” (University of Pennsylvania Press).

Jeff Gelles, the Aron and Imre Tauber Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, earned the Kazuhiko Kinosita Award in Single-Molecule Biophysics, given by the Biophysical Society. Gelles is a pioneer in the application of optical microscopy to the direct observation of individual biological macromolecules and the molecular assemblies they form.

Marcelle Soares-Santos has been named a Sloan Fellow, a recognition presented to early-career researchers by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. An assistant professor of physics, Soares-Santos studies the nature of the accelerated expansion of the universe, using data from some of the most powerful telescopes ever built. Past recipients of the Sloan Fellowship include 47 Nobel Prize winners.

Anita Hill, University Professor of Social Policy; Law; and Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies, will receive the PEN Courage Award in May at the PEN America Literary Gala. The award is given to those who serve as champions of free expression. Hill is being recognized not only for her 1991 appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee but also for her work as a professor, a scholar and the chair of the Hollywood Commission on Eliminating Sexual Harassment and Advancing Equality.